Pittsburgh Penguins defenceman Justin Schultz suffered a leg/ankle injury in Saturday's game vs. the Montreal Canadiens and is out indefinitely, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie.
The 28-year-old Schultz appeared to have twisted and seriously injured his ankle after being into the boards by Tomas Plekanec. It wasn't hard contact on the hit, but Schultz caught a bad break when he awkwardly twisted the ankle.
Schultz has four assists in four games this season. After Kris Letang, he's probably Pittsburgh's best blueliner. The smooth-skating Schultz is two years removed from a career best 51-point season, and he was instrumental in guiding the Penguins to consecutive Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017.
As McKenzie noted, there's no firm timeline on when Schultz will return to action, but it's safe to assume he'll miss several weeks of action. That leaves Pittsburgh's long-struggling blue line with a huge void, but it may be too early for general manager Jim Rutherford to make a trade.
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After struggling with the Edmonton Oilers for four seasons, Schultz revived his career with the Penguins following a 2016 trade deadline deal. He had eight points in 18 regular season games and got the Penguins to the postseason. They went on a hot run and won their fourth Stanley Cup in franchise history.
Schultz had 12 goals and 51 points in the 2016-17 season, then followed it up with 13 points in 21 playoff games. He missed 19 games last season, but Schultz still managed four goals and 27 points, and added eight points in 12 playoff games - but the Pens were eliminated by the Washington Capitals in the second round of the playoffs.
Pittsburgh is off to a 2-1-1 start, and they host the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday before embarking on a four-game road trip. They'll need the other defencemen to step up while Schultz misses several weeks of action.